They know it's Christmas, but don't exactly get it...

Update 1/12 - Dang that's good. Hops are on the resiny side of town, but that is a tasty tasty beer. :D
Update 12/15 - I don't know. It'll probably be okay. But the lack of a good bottling method pretty much guarantees that it's all going to be oxidized. And my hydrometer doesn't want to give a constant read. So, there's that. We'll just have to see how this one turns out.
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It's Christmas time in Tokyo, and boy are the department stores, coffee shops, etc, into it. "Let's Merry" is the Starbucks slogan this year. "Precious Christmas" is displayed all over your local デパート, and the worst modern Christmas misses are piped through the sound systems. Congratulations, Japan, you win. By taking all of the actual meaning out of the holiday we're left with what's truly important - bad music, gaudy decorations, and lots and lots of nutmeg. I actually like that last bit. Speaking of holiday cheer minus the real traditions,...

I brewed y'all a poor-interopretation-of-Christmas themed beer!

The brown sugar used in this recipe is known as "black sugar" in Japan. The taste seems to me to be a little richer in molasses character than the typical brown sugar used in the US. I'm told it's slightly less refined, lending it some interesting flavors. The idea here is a big red hop bomb. Maybe won't taste too much like Christmas, but it's got red and green and will keep us feeling warm and happy. Hopefully I can get it conditioned in time for my trip back to Minnesota.

Batch #74
The Red Green Show, 8 L in fermenter
4 lb Light DME
250g　Brown sugar (黒砂糖)
150g Crystal 40L
40 g Roasted Barley
20 g Black Patent
20 g Chocolate
1 oz Cascade, 6.4%AA (60m)
1 oz Amarillo, 3.9%AA (20m)
1 oz Chinook, 11.8%AA (10m)
1 oz Cascade, 6.4%AA (5m)
1 oz Centennial, 9.2%AA (1m)
1 oz Cascade (Dry Hop)
1 oz Falconer's Flight (Dry Hop)
1/2 tab Whirlfloc (5m)
WLP090 - San Diego Super Yeast, 1 L starter (2nd generation)
OG: ~1.080
FG: ~1.018
ABV: ~8%
IBU: ~90

Steep grains in ~1.5-2L water for 30 minutes while heating from room temp to ~75C. Add to main boil (~12L total), bring to temp and add extract. Hops as indicated. Chill, ferment at 18-20C. I tried a new hop-strain method today, which didn't really work, and is why my fermenter volume is only 8 L.